COMEDY
Sure, its time-slot neighbor 30 Rock may have scored all the Emmy glory—it's Tina Fey's world, after all, and we're just lucky to live in it—but The Office is still NBC's workhorse comedy. Now in its fifth season, the series is as dependable as Angela's eye rolls and Stanley's sighs, and for the most part its awkward-sweet-sad magic is still in fine form. A giant binder's worth of credit goes to guest star Amy Ryan, whose arc as HR rep Holly—a dorky gal with touching self-awareness—has provided the season's best moments so far.

As for the lows, well, the ever-manic Dwight (Rainn Wilson) is exhausting to watch. And engaged Office mates Jim (John Krasinski) and Pam (Jenna Fischer) are separated again, this time by Pam's art-school ambitions. I'd love to see them reunited, once and for all. Note to producers: Bring on the Office wedding!

Bravo, Nov. 3, 9 p.m. ET

REALITY
This is one of those shows that's supposed to be escapist entertainment but really just makes you feel sad about not being crazy-rich. The series follows "travel concierge" Sara Ryan Duffy, who arranges outrageously luxurious getaways for clients who are delighted to drop $1,000 a night on a hotel room. As class voyeurism, it's a good time, in a depressing kind of way.

MSNBC, Weekdays, 9 p.m. ET

TALK
Finally, a pundit for the Facebook generation. Witty, relatable and insanely hyper-articulate—this woman puts thought to mouth at blinding speed—Maddow, 35, is a bright new presence on the talk-news front. Her politics lean left, but she never spirals into shrillness, bantering amiably with her frequent guest, conservative commentator Pat Buchanan. Best is the fact that she dares to be fun, something most pundits will not—or cannot?—attempt.

The actress, 28, is Ziva, a special agent who knows how to turn on the glam but doesn't mind getting dirty.

WHAT'S YOUR FAVORITE ACTIVITY ON-SET? I love fight sequences—it's like dance choreography. You have to go for it. It's draining but fun.

EVER BEEN HURT? [A] rifle went straight into my mouth. It was so painful. But in a way it kind of pumped me up more.

These four Louisiana pals—Rich Collins, Scott Durbin, Dave Poche and Scott "Smitty" Smith—rose up after Hurricane Katrina to star in a new musical series on the Disney Channel.

MAKING THE BAND Bored at their day jobs in '02, the guys started playing kids' parties. "It was a grassroots situation," says Durbin.

WHEN KATRINA STRUCK "Three of the four of us lost our homes," says Collins. But spirits were lifted by parents saying, "Thank you. Your music helped our children feel less scared."

SO THEY KEPT GOING With jobs and mortgages washed away, "we had newfound resolve," says Collins. "We had a chance to remake our lives."